Applying Consensus & Cultural Models to Improve Environmental Decision-Making

在本千年结束时发起的大量国家环境倡议要求将社会文化信息更多地纳入政策和方案决策。这项研究旨在加强国家和州机构以及地方社区的能力，以便更好地将利益攸关方的利益、信仰和价值观纳入环境决策。具体而言，本研究使用环境和认知人类学的共识和认知理论和方法来识别和建模与生态和污染相关的环境利益相关者的观点。由此产生的文化模式是成员在应对其社区、行业和生态系统面临的环境挑战时所借鉴的共同的显性和隐性知识、利益、信仰和价值观的正式体现。 这项研究需要在切萨皮克湾的环境利益相关者的社区，更具体地说，Pocomoke流域的民族志实地考察。Pocomoke流域位于切萨皮克湾东部较低的海岸，由于最近在Pocomoke河下游的甲藻Pfiesteria piscicida有毒水华，Pocomoke流域正在受到州和国家环境的高度关注。在最近完成的对Pfiesteria文化后果的探索性研究中，研究人员确定了Pocomoke河流域的一些关键利益相关者群体，包括农民，watermen，环境专业人员，家禽业代表，生物生态科学家和社区领袖。拟议的研究将继续与这些利益相关者群体合作，并根据实地工作结果增加其他利益相关者。 该研究将结合联合收割机的共识和文化模式，以产生对环境问题的信念的广度和分布的补充分析，并了解这些问题是如何解释的主要利益相关者。 方法和调查结果将与环境争议的研究有关，也与有兴趣开展对话和方案以改善环境的机构和团体有关。 此外，该项目将为如何改进人类学研究生培训提供宝贵经验。

A large number of national environmental initiatives being launched at the end of the millennium call for increased integration of socio-cultural information into policy and program decision-making. This research seeks to strengthen the capacity of national and state agencies and local communities to better incorporate stakeholder interests, beliefs and values into environmental decision-making. Specifically, the research uses consensus and cognitive theory and methods from environmental and cognitive anthropology to identify and model environmental stakeholder views related to ecology and pollution. The resulting cultural models are formal representations of shared explicit and implicit knowledge, interests, beliefs and values that members draw upon when responding to the environmental challenges facing their communities, industries and ecosystems. The research requires ethnographic fieldwork in the communities of environmental stakeholders of the Chesapeake Bay in general, and the Pocomoke watershed more specifically. Situated on the lower eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, the Pocomoke watershed is receiving intensive state and national environmental attention due to the recent toxic bloom in the lower Pocomoke River of the dinoflagellate Pfiesteria piscicida. In recently-completed exploratory research of the cultural consequences of Pfiesteria, the researchers identified a number of key stakeholder groups for the Pocomoke River watershed, including farmers, watermen, environmental professionals, poultry industry representatives, bioecological scientists and community leaders. The proposed research continues to work with these stakeholder groups, and adds additional stakeholders based on fieldwork results. The research will combine consensus and cultural models to produce complementary analyses of the breadth and distribution of beliefs about environmental issues, and an understanding of how these issues are interpreted by key stakeholders. Methodology and findings will be relevant to research on environmental controversies, as well as to agencies and groups interested in developing dialogues and programs to improve the environment. In addition, the project will provide valuable experience on how to improve graduate student training in anthropology.